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Transgender 1st-grade girl wins bathroom lawsuit

Transgender 1st-grade girl wins bathroom lawsuit

A
six-year-old transgender Colorado girl won a civil rights lawsuit after
her public school decided she could not use the girls’ bathroom.

First-grader,
Coy Mathis who was born male, has identified as female since age four.
Coy’s parents say they first started noticing when she was about
18-months-old. (Via KDVR)

Coy’s
Mother: “Of course at the time our thought was that she was a little
boy that liked girls things. And it wasn’t until she started becoming
depressed and anxious that we knew there was something going on and took
her to medical professionals.” (Via KMGH)

When
Coy was four a psychologist confirmed she was transgender and her
parents say they let her, quote: “be who she was”. Coy started
kindergarten at Eagleside Elementary School in Fountain, Colorado.

Her
transition into school went smoothly and she was initially allowed to
use the girls’ bathroom. But then Coy’s parents got a call from the
school’s principal to discuss Coy’s future. (Via Daily Mail)

Coy’s
Father: “It came out that Coy was no longer going to be able to use the
girls’ restroom, they were going to require her to use the boy’s room
or the staff bathroom or the bathroom for the sick children.” (Via Katie)

Coy’s
parents decided to withdraw her and their other children from the
school and begin homeschooling. In a statement, the school district said
it was focusing on the future as Coy begins to grow older and develop.

“…
I'm certain you can appreciate that, as Coy grows older and his male
genitals develop along with the rest of his body, at least some parents
and students are likely to become uncomfortable with his continued use
of the girls’ restroom.” (Via CNN)

...which
states restroom access must coincide with the individual’s “gender
identity, rather than their assigned gender at birth.”

“We want
her to have the same opportunities as all of the other children and we
want her to be able to go back to school and be treated equally without
discrimination.” (Via KKTV)

The Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund filed
the lawsuit on behalf of the Mathis family and said, in a statement,
the ruling is not only a big step for Coy, but also holds great meaning
for the entire transgender community.

“This is the first ruling in
the nation holding that transgender students must be allowed to use
bathrooms that match who they are, and the most comprehensive ruling
ever supporting the rights of transgender people to access bathrooms
without harassment or discrimination.”

The laws protecting
transgender people vary from state to state. Currently 17 states and the
District of Columbia have some form of legal protection.

Coy’s Father: “It came out that Coy was no longer going to be able to use the girls’ restroom, they were going to require her to use the boy’s room or the staff bathroom or the bathroom for the sick children

The parents should have gone with this option. The non transgender children have rights too.

If they all treat her as a girl and the other kids don't know she has male genitalia, why would using the girls bathroom be a problem? It's not like she'll be using the urinal! But it will become an issue again when locker rooms enter the picture unless they do reassignment surgery before that.

Coy’s Father: “It came out that Coy was no longer going to be able to use the girls’ restroom, they were going to require her to use the boy’s room or the staff bathroom or the bathroom for the sick children

The parents should have gone with this option. The non transgender children have rights too.

She's not a sick child. I think that the privacy of all the children is protected; she is using a private stall, as are the other girls.

Coy’s Father: “It came out that Coy was no longer going to be able to use the girls’ restroom, they were going to require her to use the boy’s room or the staff bathroom or the bathroom for the sick children

The parents should have gone with this option. The non transgender children have rights too.

She's not a sick child. I think that the privacy of all the children is protected; she is using a private stall, as are the other girls.

At this young age it probably isn't going to be an issue but as the children get older it may be. Maybe the answer is to have more single stall bathrooms so any kid can have the option to use a private bathroom so that no-one is made uncomfortable.

Coy’s Father: “It came out that Coy was no longer going to be able to use the girls’ restroom, they were going to require her to use the boy’s room or the staff bathroom or the bathroom for the sick children

The parents should have gone with this option. The non transgender children have rights too.

She's not a sick child. I think that the privacy of all the children is protected; she is using a private stall, as are the other girls.

At this young age it probably isn't going to be an issue but as the children get older it may be. Maybe the answer is to have more single stall bathrooms so any kid can have the option to use a private bathroom so that no-one is made uncomfortable.

It will be more of an issue when she gets older, no doubt. For now, I think this is a step forward for this child.

Coy’s Father: “It came out that Coy was no longer going to be able to use the girls’ restroom, they were going to require her to use the boy’s room or the staff bathroom or the bathroom for the sick children

The parents should have gone with this option. The non transgender children have rights too.

Coy’s Father: “It came out that Coy was no longer going to be able to use the girls’ restroom, they were going to require her to use the boy’s room or the staff bathroom or the bathroom for the sick children

The parents should have gone with this option. The non transgender children have rights too.

She's not a sick child. I think that the privacy of all the children is protected; she is using a private stall, as are the other girls.

At this young age it probably isn't going to be an issue but as the children get older it may be. Maybe the answer is to have more single stall bathrooms so any kid can have the option to use a private bathroom so that no-one is made uncomfortable.

It will be more of an issue when she gets older, no doubt. For now, I think this is a step forward for this child.

Me too. I didn't mean to imply that she was sick. I meant that she would have privacy because the bathroom for sick kids is a single stall. As a society we need to acknowledge that people who were once "quietly" different are more open now and we need to make some types of accommodations for them.

It doesn't matter. You're going to be told not to look, not to worry, who cares,etc. Other kids rights aren't as important, seeing a penis is not a big deal, you shouldn't care if your daughter sees a penis accidently..... When the time comes for locker room changing, tell your daughter to change in a stall and not to shower after gym/swim practice.......

Quoting prommy:

Coy’s Father: “It came out that Coy was no longer going to be able to use the girls’ restroom, they were going to require her to use the boy’s room or the staff bathroom or the bathroom for the sick children

The parents should have gone with this option. The non transgender children have rights too.

It doesn't matter. You're going to be told not to look, not to worry, who cares,etc. Other kids rights aren't as important, seeing a penis is not a big deal, you shouldn't care if your daughter sees a penis accidently..... When the time comes for locker room changing, tell your daughter to change in a stall and not to shower after gym/swim practice.......

Quoting prommy:

Coy’s Father: “It came out that Coy was no longer going to be able to use the girls’ restroom, they were going to require her to use the boy’s room or the staff bathroom or the bathroom for the sick children

The parents should have gone with this option. The non transgender children have rights too.

I know, its unfair that the other children's rights aren't as important. That's why we should start making accommodations for the kids who don't fit the "typical" mold. If I had a daughter who saw male genitals in the bathroom or locker room I'd be upset. All parents should have the same rights to protect their children's innocence.

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